AUTUMN GRASS

Lie back and smell the daisies.

"Autumn grass" is a criminally underrated album from the early 1970's, featuring jazz influenced prog played by four highly proficient musicians. The feature (title) track was at the time of the album's release one of the longest single tracks to appear on one side of an LP (but by no means the longest), running to some 26 minutes.

The band was the brain-child of Yoel Schwarcz. Despite the fact that they only ever made two albums, he is the only person to be a band member for both (although the others who played on the first album appear as guests here) . The line up for "Autumn Grass" includes the highly proficient keyboard player Tim Rice (no relation to Andrew Lloyd-Webber's mate).

Side one consists of three tracks, all developed through live performances before being committed to vinyl. The opening "Byrd Pavan" is an improvisation on Byrd's "Earl of Salisbury pavan" combined with Purcell's "Air on a ground bass". The band add a jazz dimension to the Elizabethan flavoured "pavan", with the organ work of Rice being particularly dominant. "Vivaldi synthesis 2" is an adaptation of Vivaldi's "Guitar concerto", with synthesised strings backing. This pleasantly relaxing piece was later revived by Steve Howe on his "Steve Howe album". The final track on side one is "Overdraft", the only band composition on the album. This piece is the most jazz based of the four tracks, and also the weakest.

As mentioned previously, the inordinately long title track occupies side two. Composed by Patric Standford specifically for the band, the sleeve described the track as "a ritualistic invocation". Various guest musicians contribute to the suite, notably the Olympus Strings cello section. The highlight though is the wonderful flute of Yoel Schwarcz. About midway through the track, he picks out a baroque melody with sparse accompaniment. This theme is used as the basis for a developing improvisation with ever increasing backing driving the flute to a frantic crescendo, before the main theme restores order.

During my student years of the mid 70's, this track, and indeed the album was a regular feature of my turntable. Whilst the length of the piece had a lot to do with it (30 minutes between changing sides was most unusual), I found the music perfect to study to as it has that rare quality of supporting listening on many different levels.

"Autumn grass" stands as a truly remarkable work, criminally overlooked both at the time of its release, and indeed now. Recommended.

This wholly instrumental album is very much a game of two halves. Side one contains some rather ambling and unfocussed jazz-rock improvisations mainly based on classical pieces. Track one is Byrd's Pavan which begins with a beautiful performance of Byrd's familiar pavan before launching into a jazzy jam session. Although it does contain some lovely moments. mostly it smacks too much of self indulgent noodling, something which can be said of the whole side, with the exception of track two a very straight forward rendition of a Vivaldi slow moment. The third and final track on this side, "Overdraft" is even more noodly. So far there is nothing that would interest the average Prog fan, being as this is pretty standard jazz rock fare. Side two is rather different. Here we have the title track, a 26 minute piece. If side one led you to believe this would be more long winded noodling, you'd be wrong. Despite its length this is a tightly argued piece with elements of avant garde classical writing (melancholy strings are featured memorably through out), jazz, medievalism, an unusually interesting drum solo, in fact almost everything that early 70s progressivism was about, apart from bluesy rock that is. Prog fans should try to hear this track, even if the album as a whole remains somewhat dated.

CONTINUUM were a two-album British band led by the Hungarian multi-instrumentalist Yoel Schwarcz. Their music featured a unique combination of Progressive Rock, Classical and Jazz. Their first eponymously-titled album passed by virtually unnoticed at the time of its release in 1970, but their second album "Autumn Grass" (1971) is now gaining some well-deserved recognition in the modern Internet era. The album is split into three pieces of music on Side One and the whole of Side Two is occupied by the 26-minute-long suite and title track, "Autumn Grass". Continuum were discontinued shortly after the album's release, but their two amazing albums have now magically reappeared in a spacetime continuum known as the Internet.

The tremendous album opener "Byrd Pavan" is presumably a tribute to Jazz trumpeter Donald Byrd, although there's not a trumpet to be heard anywhere on this gorgeous 9-minute piece of music. It begins as a hauntingly-beautiful melody featuring a stately, processional church organist and a flirtatious flautist in accompaniment. The music has a sacred and ethereal ambience, conjuring up an image of some deeply religious and solemn occasion in church. It sounds like the kind of classical Baroque music you might have heard played back in Henry Purcell's time. First impressions can be deceptive though, because out of nowhere comes an animated harmonica player alongside the church organist who suddenly breaks out into a funky fugue of Jazz-Fusion in a dazzling display of keyboard wizardry. A sensational saxophonist joins the party too with some swinging and sophisticated soloing. The bass player and acoustic guitarist also have their moment of glory in the solo spotlight. Although the music is titled "Byrd Pavan", this is no slow processional dance - this is an upbeat, up-tempo and uplifting funky Jazz number that will have the church parishioners dancing down the aisles, although the vicar probably wouldn't approve.

The clue is in the title as to what you can expect with "Vivaldi Synthesis Two" because it's Vivaldi's Guitar Concerto given a modern twist with an acoustic guitar virtuoso bathed in soothing symphonic synth strings. This refined and romantic refrain is only 140 seconds long, but it's a marvellous 140 seconds of mellifluous musical magic. Vivaldi has never sounded so vibrant and vivacious.

The next piece of music is titled "Overdraft", and a bank overdraft is just what you might need to buy the original "Autumn Grass" LP album, as it's become a pretty rare collectors item these days. This 11 minute piece of music begins as a gentle piano and flute number before breaking out into a fabulous funky Jazz session. The music features a scintillating psychedelic guitar solo as well as an impressive display of keyboard dexterity from the lively organist. This sublime swinging sensation concludes with the gently tinkling sound of a solo piano to play out Side One. This is stirring and stimulating Jazz-Rock designed to light a fire in the soul.

And now we come to the magnum opus, the 26-minute-long title track, occupying the whole of Side Two. This is no "Moonlight Serenade". This music is as bright and bubbly as sparkling lemonade. As might be expected, this long piece is a veritable potpourri of musical instruments and styles. It's a stunning interplay, featuring Baroque piano pieces, classical cellos, pastoral flutes, haunting harmonica solos, gentle acoustic guitars and tympanic drum sequences. All in all, it's a magnificent display of musical virtuosity in which all of the assembled players are given their chance to shine and display their musical feathers in all of their magnificent plumage. The music on this album has been described as a "ritualistic invocation", which sums it up rather nicely I think.

"Autumn Grass" is an intoxicating concoction of Jazz and Classical music combined together into an intriguingly heady cocktail of masterful melodies and intricate improvisation, which could best be described as Baroque Jazz-Rock. If you're looking for something completely different, then step out into the "Autumn Grass" world of Continuum, because this is the album for you. "Autumn Grass" is playful and pastoral and this enchanting and emotionally elevating album sounds good at any time of the year.